Just to be Quiet
by Sketchling
Summary: 'No,' he told himself, 'Back then it was just a childish crush. Now...it's something more.' -ROYAI- R&R! minor spoilers, beware. Rated T just to be safe.


** A/N:** I'm sick, as some of you may know. So, naturally, I came up with a Royai fic. Somewhere towards the end of the fic, I started listening to Quiet by Lights while writing, and realized the song actually sort of went with the plot of the fic.

**Disclaimer:** I don't own FMA or Quiet (but damn, I wish I did).

"_I'm not yours, and you're not mine_

_But we can sit and pass the time_

_No fighting wars, no ringing chimes_

_We're just feeling fine."_

_**Just to be Quiet**_

_ Tap, tap, tap._

Roy tapped his pen on the hard wood of his desk, unable to concentrate on his paperwork. Despite what rumors said, this wasn't a normal thing for him. There was something...off about his office. He couldn't quite say what, though, and it was bugging him to no end. Everything was in their usual places.

Maybe something was missing? His onyx eyes scanned the office slowly and carefully.

...Nope, wasn't that. Everything was there. Roy sighed and began playing with his pen again, tapping it on the desk a little harder than before. What was different? Maybe...someone was gone?

Well, _everyone_ was gone. Bradley had separated his subordinates from him.

Roy's heart sunk a little when he thought about that, but he quickly pushed it to the back of his mind. Suddenly, thinking about that lead him to thinking about how he'd started coming in to work early. He started doing it so he could see Hawkeye, who always came in early.

Now that he thought about it...he hadn't seen her that morning. He shifted in his seat uncomfortably. _'Maybe she just came in late,' _he thought in a lame attempt to reassure himself.

But she was under Bradley's control...and the night before she'd sounded upset on the phone. He knew she'd been lying when she told him everything was fine. He'd wanted to go to her apartment, just to check up on her, but he could risk being followed if he did that, and he knew it would make Hawkeye upset.

_'I'll go down to the Fuhrer's office,'_ he decided. _'I have to give Bradley these papers, anyway.'_

XoXoXoX

"I'm sorry, sir," the Fuhrer's secretary told him. "But Lt. Hawkeye called in sick today."

Roy's heart almost stopped beating. Hawkeye had stayed home sick? Yeah, right. She was _never_ sick. Even if she did get sick, she came to work anyway.

_'But last night she sounded pretty upset…what if Bradley did something to her?'_

Roy thanked the woman for her help and made his way to the men's locker room after giving her the papers for Bradley.

She was his subordinate, after all. And it was his job to look after and protect his subordinates.

Even if they would yell at you and call you an idiot for risking your life.

XoXoXoX

Roy stood in front of her apartment door, his fist poised to knock. He was terrified. No, that was an understatement; he was ready to piss his pants. Hawkeye was sure to kill him for coming here. _'I'm sure I wasn't followed, though,' _he thought, adjusting his fedora. _'I came in disguise.'_

He placed his hand on the door knob and twisted, only to find that it was locked. Roy mumbled something about an extra key and searched his pockets for one, only to come up empty-handed. Hawkeye, had, in fact, given him an extra key to her apartment. She made it extremely clear that if he came into her house without permission or in an event that did not count as an emergency, she would personally see to it that he was punished (which meant more paperwork).

It was then he remembered a certain item in his back pocket. He reached in and…yes! It was the paperclip from earlier. When he'd given the secretary the papers, they'd been clipped together with a paperclip. Well, two, actually. He'd been so distracted by Hawkeye's absence that he'd added an extra one by accident. The woman had pointed it out and he'd taken it, stuffing it carelessly into the pocket of his civilian pants after he changed.

Now he put his hand on the door knob and began straightening out the paperclip.

_"Mr. Mustang, what do you think you're doing?" Roy looked up to see his teacher's daughter standing over him, her arms folded across her chest._

_ "Well," he said, his face beginning to heat up. "The door was locked, and I don't have my key…and Teacher is out on business…"_

_ "So you decided to pick the lock?" Her expression remained stoic, but her eyes were laughing at him._

_ "Yes," Roy muttered. He stuck the deformed paperclip back into the lock again and moved it around for a bit, waiting for the familiar click of the unlocking door. It never came. The teenager let out a defeated sigh and dropped the paperclip on the ground. "I give up."_

_ Riza hovered over him for a moment before picking the paperclip up off the ground. He watched with interest as she straightened the paperclip out, bending the small end slightly. Then she put one hand on the door knob and stuck the paperclip in. She wiggled it around for a moment before a quick 'click' sounded and she pushed the door open with ease._

_ He stared down at the younger girl in shock. "Wh-wha? How did you…where did you learn that?"_

_ She shrugged nonchalantly. "I just thought about it in a logical way. Something you obviously never do."_

The door to the apartment let out a small 'click' and he grinned to himself. Even though Riza had taught him how to pick a lock with a paperclip when he was fourteen, he'd never successfully picked a lock until now.

He pushed the door open cautiously and stepped inside, quietly locking the door behind him. When he turned around, there was a gun in his face.

"Shit!" he cried, stumbling backwards into the door. Hawkeye stood there in light blue pajamas. Her hair was a little messy and she looked pale, but she was obviously well enough to be waving her gun around.

The woman lowered her gun and stared at him in shock. "Colonel? What are you doing here?" Her voice sounded hoarse.

"You called in sick," he stated bluntly.

"Well, yes. That's because I _am_ sick." Riza rolled her eyes, appearing annoyed as she set her gun on the bookshelf in the hall. Then her expression turned to one of anger.

"Sir, what the hell were you thinking? What do you think you're doing here? What if someone followed you? What if—" She broke off into a rough cough and Roy rushed to her side, placing a hand on her shoulder in a comforting gesture.

"Shh," Roy soothed her. "I wasn't followed. I came in disguise, see?" Roy took off his hat for proof and tossed it carelessly onto the bookshelf next to her gun.

Riza rolled her eyes again. "Sir, anyone could easily recognize your face."

Roy shot her a grin. "Let them see my face. Anything to see my dearest Lt.!" Riza gave him a look. "Anyway, Miss Hawkeye," he continued in a mock doctor voice. "How are you feeling today?"

"I have a fever and my throat hurts a little. And my head hurts. I feel sore all over."

Roy paused, stroking his chin and looking deep in thought. "Well, after thinking it over, I think I've finally discovered the problem."

Riza raised an eyebrow. "Oh really, doctor? Is it life-threatening?"

"Maybe," her superior replied, gently taking her chin in his hand and tilting her face up so that her eyes met his. "You've been bitten by the love bug."

"Sir, that's one of the cheesiest things you've ever said to me."

He pouted and stuck out his lower lip, releasing her chin. "'One of the cheesiest'? You mean there are more?"

She gave him a firm nod. "Yes, sir. For example…'are you tired? 'Cos you've been running around my mind all day'." Roy frowned. "Oh, and 'I put the STD in stud. All I need is U'."

"I was only fourteen!" Roy growled defensively. "I didn't understand it then."

"Honestly, sir, I was only _twelve_ and I still understood it."

Roy let out a huff and ruffled her long blonde hair. He used to do it to her when they were children, and she hated it.

Now she let out a sigh, doing her best not to get annoyed. She padded towards the small kitchen, calling to him over her shoulder. "Would you like anything to drink, sir? I could make some tea—" Roy cut her off, wrapping his arms around her waist.

"And just where do you think you're going, Lt.?" he asked, his warm breath tickling her ear. A smile crept onto his lips when he felt her shudder slightly in his grip. "You should be resting," he continued. "_I'll_ make tea."

Riza hesitated before opening her mouth, obviously about to protest. He quickly brought his hand up her face and placed his thumb on her lips. "That's an order, Lt.."

He grinned in triumph as his subordinate let out a huff and pushed her way out of his grip. She gave him a glare before she disappeared into the hallway. Roy waited until he heard her bedroom door shut before he opened the cupboards above the kitchen sink. The only tea she had was green tea.

Roy hated green tea.

After some more rummaging around, he found two packets of black tea hidden in the drawer on the left of the sink.

He hated black tea, too.

Actually, now that he thought about it, he'd never been very fond of tea. Coffee was more his thing. But from the looks of it, his Lt. was exactly the opposite of him. She didn't own any coffee, and now that he thought about it, she'd mentioned that she despised the taste of coffee before.

Roy groaned. But…maybe she had something else he could make? Maybe something more suitable for sick people? He opened the small refrigerator. It was devoid of anything that might be considered unhealthy or unnecessary. His onyx eyes fluttered around for a moment before landing on a carton of milk perched on the top shelf.

Now he knew what to make, if he could find some honey…

XoXoXoX

Riza stared up at the plain ceiling of her bedroom, trying to make sense of what was going on.

The Colonel had come to see her because he found out she called in sick. But why? Her hand subconsciously touched the small cut on her cheek. Probably because he knew she was upset the night before. Not only that, but she was currently under the command of a homunculus. Actually, she was being held hostage by not just one, but _two_ homunculi.

The blonde woman sighed and rolled over onto her side, facing her dog. Hayate's deep brown eyes gazed at her with what she decided was concern as he gently licked her hand, letting out a soft whine. She smiled softly and stroked his back.

Roy was an idiot. An incompetent, lazy, goofy idiot.

And she loved him for it.

XoXoXoX

Roy paused at the bedroom door, two steaming mugs in hand. He wondered if she fell asleep. Maybe he should just leave.

_'No!' _He thought, shaking his head. _'This is no big deal. You used to sneak into your sisters' rooms when you were little to annoy them. This should be no different! Hawkeye's just a girl. A girl with guns. A girl in the military. A girl you love…'_ Roy's breathing nearly stopped. Did he really just think that? Did he love his Lt.?

Roy thought back to his childhood and all the times he'd used pick-up lines on her. He'd only been teasing her then. He hadn't…loved her. Had he?

_'No,' _he told himself as he grabbed the door knob, carefully balancing both mugs in his free hand. _'Back then it was just a childish crush. Now…' _Roy pushed the door open. Riza was lying on her side, facing away from him. She sat up at the sound of the door opening and turned to face him. Sunlight filtered in through the window on the wall behind her (on the wall she been facing when he entered), making her blonde hair glow. Her amber eyes sparkled in the sunlight, making it look like she had a mini fire blazing in her eyes.

_'…It's something more.'_

"You didn't make tea," Riza stated bluntly.

"H-how did you know that?" Roy asked in shock. "Your nose is stuffed up! You can't smell anything!"

"Tea takes longer to make," she informed him with a smirk.

Roy chuckled and stepped inside, kicking the door shut with his foot. "Yeah, I didn't make tea. But I made something that should help with that cough of yours."

Riza only blinked in response. He stood at her bedside awkwardly for a moment before placing the mugs on the bedside table and sitting on the edge of the bed. Her eyes never strayed from his figure as he moved. Roy grabbed one of the mugs off the table and handed it to her gently, being careful not to spill. She stared into the mug before taking a small, hesitant sip.

"Milk and honey?" she inquired with a raised eyebrow.

Roy shrugged, taking a sip from his own mug. "Madame Christmas always gave it to me when I got sick as a child. And there was that time when you made it for me."

A soft smile graced her lips as she took another sip. "Yes, I remember. You were coming down with a cold before your exam."

The Colonel nodded. "It would've gotten worse if you wouldn't have helped me."

"I almost didn't," Riza reminded him with a sharp look. "You were too stubborn to accept my help at first."

"W-well, you were only twelve. I didn't think there was anything you could do to help."

"I'm not stupid, sir. I know that accepting help from a twelve-year-old girl to fight off a small cold doesn't make you look very manly," she deadpanned.

He met her challenging gaze with a glare for a few minutes. Then they both looked away, laughing quietly.

"Sometimes I forget how much fun we had when we were kids," Roy laughed, shaking his head.

Riza nodded in agreement and stroked Hayate's furry form, which he just now noticed was lying at her side. Her features were content, and he longed to reach out and push that little strand of hair behind her ear. It was brushing up against her cheek—

Wait. Roy narrowed his eyes. There was something on her cheek.

Half glad he'd finally found an excuse and half curious as to what the thing actually was, he reached forward and pushed the lock of blonde hair behind his Lt.'s ear. She jumped under his touch and jerked away.

"Sir, what are you—"

"There's something on your cheek—"

Roy's voice went dead halfway into the sentence. It was a scratch on her cheek. A neat, thin, little line that was covered by a thin layer of dried blood.

"H-Hayate accidently scratched me while I was playing with him yesterday," she mumbled lamely. Her nonchalant act was practically see-through.

They both knew it was a lie. A very weak, unstable lie. Roy damned Bradley under his breath as he took Riza's trembling hand in his, their fingers instinctively intertwining. He gave her a small, reassuring smile and gave her hand a quick squeeze. She only looked away.

Roy had never seen her this frightened before. He knew that Bradley was a homunculus, and homunculi were things to be feared, but was it really Bradley that had shaken her up this badly? He frowned and ruffled her hair in an attempt to lighten her mood. She responded with a small smile that pierced his heart.

"Thank you for coming, sir," she said softly, placing her mug on the table next to his.

Roy grinned and leaned in so that their foreheads were touching. "Anything for my dearest Lt.," he whispered before placing a gentle kiss on her wounded cheek.

_**~Owari~**_

__**A/N:** Sorry if you guys expected a better ending than that…I'm kinda out of it lD Anyways, please review as always! I love you guys! ~Sketch


End file.
